Magic at your dinner party!

Magic can be a great addition to your dinner party. Here are a few tips when hiring a magician to entertain your dinner guests.

The two most common styles of magic for dinner parties are Strolling magic or Parlor magic. Strolling magic consists of small “hit and run” interactions between the magician and one or two of your guests. The magician mingles with your guests and performs small tricks in their hands or his own. These are usually short tricks and can be highly impactful and very personal.

Parlor magic is usually performed after dinner. The show can be performed while guests are still at the dining table or you may have your guests migrate to another room and gather for the show. Parlor shows are usually very interactive and can include magic involving your guests. If your guests are particularly shy you may want to talk to your entertainer and ask that they not include your guests in the show. For some magicians this can be a problem as many magicians depend heavily on audience interaction.

Strolling magic can be the most delightful and magical experience of all. The magic happens inches from your eyes, often in your own hands.

Dinner parties almost always consist of an hour or so of meet and greet as guests arrive, followed by dinner then after dinner drinks and conversation. Most often magicians perform strolling magic during the meet and greet or cocktail hour. This makes sense in theory, because it gives guests a chance to enjoy some magic as a nice appetizer to dinner and acts as an “ice breaker” for guests who may not have anything to talk about. In practice it is not always the best choice, especially if you are planning on having guests who will want to talk to each other either about business or catch up with one another. In some cases having a magician at the beginning of your event may be more of an impediment to conversation than a welcome diversion. Keep this in mind when you are planning your event and discuss this with your party planner or entertainer before the event and decide together how to best integrate the entertainment into your dinner party.

Dinner parties are primarily about conversation between your guests. Magic can be a great addition to your party and can add immeasurably to your guest’s enjoyment when properly integrated into the evening. With a little planning and the help of your professional event planner or magician specialist your event will truly be magical.